The 25-year-old son of a prominent New Orleans doctor was sentenced to four years in prison Tuesday for a fatal drunken driving accident in which he plowed down a Metairie man walking across Tchoupitoulas Street.

Abhishek Bhansali

On March 21, 2009, Abhishek Bhansali swerved into the wrong lane, driving against traffic, when he struck Michael Keith, 34, a music promoter and father of three children. Keith died at the scene.

Tests showed Bhansali was legally drunk, posting a .128 on a blood-alcohol test. The legal limit in Louisiana is .08.

Bhansali, the son of cardiologist Siddharth Bhansali, was originally booked and charged with vehicular homicide, the crime typically associated with a drunken driving fatality.

But that charge was reduced to negligent homicide in December as part of a plea bargain with the Orleans Parish district attorney's office. Bhansali entered an "Alford plea," which meant he did not admit guilt, but conceded that the strong evidence could have led to his conviction.

The reduced charge meant that Bhansali faced a maximum of five years in prison, as opposed to a five-year minimum. Vehicular homicide carries a maximum penalty of 30 years imprisonment.

While Keith's widow, Brunetta Keith, endorsed the plea deal, several of his immediate family members who attended the sentencing did not.

In November, Brunetta Keith told Criminal District Court Judge Arthur Hunter that she forgave Bhansali and had no desire to see him spend time in prison. She also told the judge that her lawsuit against Bhansali had been settled for $400,000, while trust funds were established to help her two children attend college.

Monte Keith, 32, Keith's brother, said he and other relatives were "totally against" the deal, saying they saw no evidence at the sentencing hearing that Bhansali had taken steps to atone for what he did. The four-year sentence imposed by Hunter provided the first sense of closure for the family, he said.

"We feel justice was finally served," Monte Keith said in an interview after the proceeding. Keith said the payments to his brother's widow seemed to drive the process in criminal court.

"This whole case has been about money," he said.

Brenda Sinclair, a victim's advocate for Mothers Against Drunk Driving who attended the hearing, said the reduction of a charge shouldn't be based on the ability of a victim's relative to forgive the offender.

"I'm not an attorney, but from what I could see, there were no major issues with the case," Sinclair said. "Forgiveness is wonderful for the victim to be able to do that. But it is the DA's job to prosecute criminals."

However, Sinclair said she was pleased that Hunter denied a request by Bhansali's attorney to allow him to report to jail in two weeks. Instead, sheriff's deputies took Bhansali into custody in the courtroom, she said.

"The family did get to see that. That is a measure of justice for them," she said.

Bhansali's defense attorney Ralph Whalen and a spokesman for the Orleans Parish DA's office did not respond to requests for comment.

Dr. Siddharth Bhansali is an active patron of the arts in New Orleans, supporting local art museums, as well as the Audubon Zoo and the New Orleans Jazz and Heritage Foundation. Abhishek Bhansali's mother is a descendant of Indian royalty.